At least 27 people have died in a bus accident where the vehicle fell into the Marsyangdi River near Aanbukhaireni in Tanahun district on Friday morning, according to Chief District Officer Janardan Gautam. He reported that 16 seriously injured individuals were airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment by an army helicopter. They were taken to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj.
What Authority says
The bus had entered Nepal through the Belahiya border point in Rupandehi district on August 20, as stated by Deputy Superintendent of Police Manohar Bhatt of Rupandehi in a conversation with BBC’s Keshav Koirala. The bus, which was traveling from Pokhara to Kathmandu, fell off the road near Aina Pahara in Aanbukhaireni. Earlier, speaking with BBC’s Pradeep Basyal, Chief District Officer Gautam mentioned that some passengers were missing, and a search operation was underway. He, who visited the accident site in the afternoon, said that “29 people were rescued, and out of them, 15 were in a condition to speak.” Some of the injured died during treatment or while being transported for treatment. The cause of the accident is yet to be determined.
According to eyewitness Rupesh Tamang, the accident occurred around 11 a.m. He is a local resident. Fifteen minutes after the accident, he reached the scene and saw passengers scattered everywhere, as he told BBC’s Narayanghat-based correspondent Ishwar Joshi. He mentioned that some passengers were rescued with the help of the police. The roof of the bus detached when it fell off the road. According to DSP Bhatt, the bus, owned by Kesarwani Transport, had come to Nepal from Gorakhpur. The police have reported that, apart from the driver and helper, there were around 40 passengers on board.
“The record shows that the bus, carrying 40 passengers from Maharashtra, entered Nepal at 5:03 p.m. after clearing customs,” he said.
All the passengers stayed in a hotel in Bhairahawa on August 20. The bus then left for Pokhara the next morning, according to Bhatt. The police mentioned that the bus had entered Nepal with an eight-day permit.
Tragic Marsyangdi Bus Accident: Interest from Indian authorities
With news that the passengers on the bus were Indian, Indian officials have expressed concern over the incident. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, in a post on ‘X,’ stated that most of them were from Jalgaon district under his state. He mentioned that local police officials would be coming to the Nepal border via Uttar Pradesh to coordinate, and the state government would also work with the Nepal government to arrange treatment for the injured. Meanwhile, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu also stated that coordination with local authorities is ongoing.
Accident in a ‘difficult location’
Videos and images taken at the accident site show the wreckage of the bus on the bank of the Marsyangdi River. Earlier, Shiv Thapa, the chief of the Area Police Office in Aanbukhaireni, said that the rescue operation was difficult because the bus had fallen into a challenging location. According to Bhishma Kumar Bhusal, the head of the Disaster and Conflict Management Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs, a helicopter with a medical team was dispatched to the accident site to assist with the rescue operation. Read more blog here: https://royalnepalgroup.com/blog/
